Arlene Ackerman (educator)
| Arlene C. Ackerman | |
|---|---|
| Born | January 10, 1947 |
| Died | February 2, 2013 (aged 66) |
| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater |
Harris–Stowe State University; Washington University; Harvard University |
| Occupation | Educator |
Arlene C. Ackerman, Ed. D. (January 10, 1947 – February 2, 2013) was an African-American educator whose jobs included superintendent of the District of Columbia Public Schools, San Francisco Unified School District and Philadelphia Public Schools.
Dr. Ackerman received her doctorate in Administration, Planning, & Social Policy from the Harvard Graduate School of Education, Urban Superintendents Program. She held a Master of Arts in Education from Harvard University, a Master of Arts in Educational Administration and Policy from Washington University in St. Louis, and a Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education from Harris Stowe Teacher's College in St. Louis, Missouri.
Dr. Ackerman's had experience as a classroom teacher at both the elementary and middle school levels; principal at the middle school level; Director, Upward Bound Program for first-generation college-bound students; Director, Basic Skills Academy for at-risk high school youth; Assistant Superintendent, Special Services; Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum, Instruction and Academic Achievement; and Deputy Superintendent/Chief Academic Officer.
Ackerman was superintendent of the D.C. public schools from May 1998 until July 17, 2000.
In July 2000, Ackerman became the first female superintendent of San Francisco's Unified School District. She held that position until 2007. During her time, Dr. Ackerman positioned San Francisco Public schools as one of the five finalists for the 2005 Broad Prize for Urban Education, given annually to the best urban school district in the country. In spring 2005, California announced that for the second year in a row, San Francisco had the highest student achievement of any urban school system in California. While superintendent, 86% of the district's underperforming schools made continued progress after Dr. Ackerman introduced a program to target additional resources and create a new equitable funding formula for those schools. All ethnicities and all groups of students including special education, gifted and English Language Learners (ELL) demonstrated gains on state mandated exams, and all students consistently scored above the state and national averages in reading and in math. During her tenure in San Francisco, the city's public schools with, 62,000 students and 117 schools, attained five consecutive years of improved achievement for all groups of students while also holding the distinction as the highest performing large urban school district in the state of California during the last two years of her superintendence. Ackerman won national acclaim for initiatives she implemented in San Francisco's schools, including extra support for low-performing schools; the "weighted student formula," in which funding followed each student in different amounts depending on the student's needs; and "site-based budgeting," which gave schools (as opposed to district bureaucrats) far more control over their own budgets. In May 2007, after her departure, she sued the district, asserting that they had not paid $170,000 of her agreed-on severance compensation. She dropped the suit the following month.
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